Jaipur:
In an attempt to increase the number of beds for coronavirus patients, the Rajasthan government on Saturday allowed private hospitals to accommodate nearby hotels as extended COVID care centers where asymptomatic patients can be treated.
To do this, private hospitals will have to sign a memorandum of understanding with hotels after obtaining permission from the district collector and under the conditions set by the state government, according to an official statement.
The state government also set the maximum charges that will be charged to patients staying at these extended COVID care centers in three different categories of hotels: upper class, middle class, and standard class.
Charges shall not exceed Rs 5,000 plus tax in upper class hotels, Rs 4,000 plus tax in middle class hotels and Rs 3,000 plus charges in standard hotels per day. The charges include tea, breakfast, lunch and dinner twice, water, cleaning, disinfection, medications, cylinders and other equipment necessary for low-flow oxygen, masks and consumables, according to the statement.
The paramedical personnel will be assigned to the hotels 24 hours a day by the hospitals, which will also have to provide PPE kits, masks and others, to the hotel staff.
Hospitals will charge patients and pay hotels, he said.
The chief secretary (medical and health), Akhil Arora, said in an order that asymptomatic patients are also admitted to public and private hospitals and that these patients only need the supervision of doctors.
He said that these patients should be admitted to hospital COVID care centers rather than dedicated COVID hospitals so beds in the latter category can be made available for mild / moderate and severe patients.
The number of coronavirus cases and deaths due to the disease is steadily increasing in the state where more than 88,000 people have been affected by the infection.
.